Dubai: A jobless man accused of breaking into a veterinary clinic along Al Wasl Road and stealing between Dh5,000 and Dh7,000 claimed he desperately needed the money to buy alcohol.
The 44-year-old Emirati man was charged trespassing, causing damage worth Dh200 to the clinic's cash registers and stealing an amount between Dh5,000 and Dh7,000.
The defendant failed to appear before the Dubai Misdemeanour Court where he was scheduled to be prosecuted in Courtroom Nine yesterday.
Vet informed
A German veterinary surgeon said the clinic's gardener informed her that a thief had broken into the clinic around 7am and stolen money.
"The gardener informed me over the phone. When I arrived at the clinic, police interrogators were already there. The suspect stole all the cash. I was the last person who locked the clinic before I left. The burglar trespassed into the clinic through the sliding door," the veterinary surgeon told prosecutors.
Police identified the suspect and arrested him shortly after the incident.
He told prosecutors that he needed the money so badly because he wanted to buy alcohol and get drunk.
Court records said the defendant had a previous record of a similar burglary that he carried out in 1987.
The court reconvenes on January 26.
